Rollercoaster Tycoon: The Movie

May 13, 2010 - By Liam Goodwin

Following the announcement that Paramount are developing a movie based on the Magic-8 Ball it was clear movie studios are pretty much out of ideas, and that any toy, board or video game could potentially be at risk from a movie makeover.

Well today we have news that another movie based on a video game is in development: Rollercoaster Tycoon.

Sony Pictures Animation has pre-emptively picked up rights to the Atari video game “Rollercoaster Tycoon.” Harald Zwart is spearheading the development of the big-screen adaptation as a possible directing project and will executive produce.

David Ronn and Jay Scherick, who penned the upcoming Kevin James comedy “The Zookeeper,” are attached to write what will be a live-action/CGI hybrid.

The “Tycoon” franchise, created by Chris Sawyer, is a popular series of computer games that simulate a combination of designing roller coasters and amusement park management. Each game challenges players with open-ended amusement park management and development while allowing them to construct and customize their own unique roller coasters.

The games are popular in the PC world, generating more than $300 million in sales and giving Atari bragging rights for having the third-best-selling PC title of all time in the U.S.

I’m not sure how they’ll develop a story out of this, but I imagine it’ll probably be a kids movie so a plot that makes sense won’t be required.